ON THE NFL.

Jilted, but no time to despair

Now that Nick Saban has left Jerry Angelo standing at the altar, it's time for the Bears' general manager to get on one of those bachelor TV shows. But his blind dates don't seem to be working either.

The Bears are claiming that all is well. After all, the season doesn't start for another eight months.

Maybe Angelo was just trying to get all the defensive-minded candidates out of the way before he gets serious. The request to interview Pittsburgh Steelers offensive line coach Russ Grimm is a start. Although Grimm never has been a coordinator, the Bears could argue they are discovering the future.

If new Atlanta Falcons coach Jim Mora was Plan B, Angelo still is playing second fiddle to new Falcons general manager Rich McKay, his former boss in Tampa Bay. The Falcons apparently made a run at Saban, too, before seeing his handwriting on his new LSU contract.

At least the Bears no longer are burdened by unrealistic expectations.

Saban would have spurred visions of an immediate Super Bowl. That's where the Washington Redskins think they're headed by hiring the one man who has taken them there four times, Joe Gibbs. A championship is what the New York Giants expect out of Tom Coughlin. Even the Arizona Cardinals believe they can win more than half their games now that Dennis Green is aboard.

Fired Giants coach Jim Fassel could get into the picture, but he reportedly didn't interview well in either Buffalo or Arizona. Maybe he was holding out for Chicago. Truth be told, Angelo could do worse.

Having talked already to Lovie Smith of St. Louis and Romeo Crennel of New England, Angelo has fallback positions with two well-respected defensive coordinators. Hopefully, the first question they addressed was who would run their offenses and develop young quarterback Rex Grossman.

Grossman remains what this whole chase is about.

If offensive coordinator Brad Childress of the Philadelphia Eagles isn't considered a head coaching candidate, whoever becomes the Bears' coach will have to hire somebody like Childress to tutor Grossman the way he has tutored Donovan McNabb.

The same goes for offensive coordinators Charlie Weis of New England, Mike Heimerdinger of Tennessee and Mike Mularkey of Pittsburgh. Weis developed Tom Brady, Heimerdinger took Steve McNair to a new level, Mularkey rejuvenated Tommy Maddox and coached Kordell Stewart into a Pro Bowl.

Dan Henning is only 61. The offensive coordinator of the Carolina Panthers wasn't successful as a head coach before. Neither was Al Saunders, 56, offensive coordinator of the Kansas City Chiefs. But Henning also has worked for Gibbs, and Saunders for Dick Vermeil. Maybe they need another chance.

For the time being, Bears fans and Angelo are left to wonder why Saban jilted them. Since coaching together at Syracuse in 1977, the two men have been friends for 25 years and no doubt talked before this weekend about one day working together.

Two years ago, it might have happened if Dick Jauron had not surprised Angelo and everybody else with a 13-3 season that saved his job. Saban had been at LSU for only two years then, but he wouldn't have been the first coach to take a promotion.

As national champion, Saban had no reason to leave, yet every reason. As secure as he is with a new contract, every year short of a repeat will be a disappointment, if not to Saban surely to rabid LSU fans.

It is true that Saban will get more chances to coach in the NFL, but not with the Bears or his friend. Saban is right when he lamented Saturday that "things are a little different in the league than when I was there."

He last worked in the NFL for Cleveland in 1994, when the salary cap and free agency were only a year old. It's tougher than ever to win because it's tougher than ever to assemble and keep talent, which is exactly why college coaches are in demand by the NFL. They are accustomed to teaching quickly because their players change every three or four years.

Bear fans have to hope Saban's decision was sentiment and circumstance, or maybe nothing more complicated than a wife and family tired of moving. But surely nobody would prefer Baton Rouge to Chicago, would they? And money couldn't possibly have been a factor, was it?